91成人导航

Business recruiters optimistic for job market

The numbers are daunting, but optimism remains in the job market for recent college graduates and undergraduates seeking internships.

As of May 28, the United States unemployment rate stood at 23.9% and more than 40 million Americans had filed jobless claims, according to Fortune.

The COVID-19 pandemic has in many ways ravaged the economy, but three college recruiters鈥攖wo of them 91成人导航 graduates鈥攕ee reason for optimism.

鈥淧ut the numbers on your side, apply to as many places as possible,鈥� said Lindsay Lovett 鈥�04, a college recruiter for Cepheid, a molecular diagnostics firm. 鈥淚f you are looking for a job, then looking for a job is your full-time job right now. You should be spending six or seven hours a day working at it.鈥�

Lovett, Susan Te 鈥�15 of professional services company Deloitte and Brittany Rodriguez of Bloomberg spoke during a virtual session called 鈥淕etting Hired in a Pandemic.鈥� The Eberhardt School of Business and Department of Economics co-sponsored the event.

鈥淥ur three panelists recruit at 91成人导航 and other universities and have had to make adjustments,鈥� said Margaret Roberts, 91成人导航 director of employment development and moderator. 鈥淭hey can speak to the impact of the pandemic on the job market for college graduates and students.鈥�

Internships
The three companies have not cut back on internships, but positions have shifted to remote work. Rodriguez said it was a 鈥渂ig adjustment鈥� but Bloomberg was able to maintain its intern numbers.

鈥淓verything from onboarding to training to the work has changed,鈥� she said. 鈥淥ne of the big differences is we are recruiting our interns virtually. But it has worked out well.鈥�

Recruiting and hiring
Trips to recruit at campuses and large-scale recruiting fairs have ended for now. Recruiters said it has been a significant pivot to change the dynamics of their strategies.

鈥淲e are similar to a lot of companies in that regard,鈥� Te said. 鈥淏ut we have tried to keep a mix of formal and informal parts of the process. We hold panel discussions with employees and have other virtual interaction.鈥�

鈥淲e are not doing campus visits, but in some ways, this has added efficiency to our recruiting,鈥� Lovett said. 鈥淚 do not think it has had a negative effect. Having to do things virtually is something we all are dealing with, so there is a lot of patience from all involved.鈥�

Job outlook
All three recruiters said their companies鈥� hiring expectations remain solid. In fact, hiring should increase for Cepheid, Lovett said, noting the company is doing COVID-19 work and research.

Rodriguez and Te said their companies also have not scaled back. 鈥淓xpectations remain strong at Bloomberg,鈥� Rodriguez said.

Roberts said, as a whole, 91成人导航 graduates鈥� job offers have 鈥渘ot been rescinded due to the pandemic. We have had some (full-time) hires who have had their start dates pushed back,鈥� she said.

Tips for students seeking jobs

• Leverage and grow your network: 鈥淭here are a large number of 91成人导航 alumni and connections who will give you help. Take advantage of their willingness to help,鈥� Te said.
• Be resilient: 鈥淭hese are difficult times, but resiliency is one of the core competencies we look for in applicants. We look for employees who can adapt to challenges,鈥� Rodriguez said.
• Follow the economy and job market: 鈥淢ake it a habit to keep in tune with what is going on in the economy. And think critically about what you are seeing,鈥� Lovett said.
• Perfect your resumes: 鈥淚 see hundreds each week. They are becoming more important,鈥� Lovett said.

91成人导航's career advisors remain available to help graduates and current students during the summer.